The Impact of Strategic Technology Partnerships

• By Craig Newell
• May 22, 2023

It may sound counterintuitive, but transparency is vital in the security industry. While many solutions block, divert and alert to imminent threats, at its core, security is rooted in the critical clarity between what the end-user needs and what the provider can offer.

Identify the Needs First
That should be the roadmap: identify the needs first and let that drive innovation. The evolutionary crossroads we have seen in the security realm is when a customer presents a complex requirement requiring additional expertise. Do we allocate resources to producing something ourselves? Do we seek outside assistance to solve it with a collaborative approach? While the former may be a bold idea, the latter is proving far more successful in today's ever-evolving security landscape.

Installations in numerous worldwide organizations, Gallagher has been involved in access control, perimeter and intrusion detection for 85 years. They are constantly evolving to meet and exceed the needs of their customers, including the one they brought to Traka. Traka understands the value of like-minded collaboration to address security solutions as well as a partnership with Gallagher.

The result was a comprehensive system for the customer that combined Gallagher's expertise in high-assurance credential card access and Traka's secure key and equipment management solutions. The extensive integration between systems allowed the customer to assign appropriate access while protecting against unauthorized usage quickly.

The Requested Solution
That was the initial customer's perspective – thanks to the partnership, they got the requested solution. But that is just one audience to consider when looking at the value of integration.

After an initial collaboration, each company has established a footprint in the others' landscape, and the opportunity for cross-promotion and lead generation is clear. The integration demonstrates to potential clients that both businesses are partnering to address the most urgent security concerns. Customers know that even if they have a problem outside of a business's core strengths, the company will look to forming partnerships to resolve it.

Internally, both businesses share the same sentiment. Any supplier acknowledging, they cannot eliminate every security problem alone is humble. Yet, in a manner, by reiterating, "We know we do X well," it reinforces the brand identity. You display initiative, teamwork and creativity to your employees and consumers while bolstering the firm's basic principles by combining expertise with an equally enthusiastic partner to handle more difficulties than either company could. Such camaraderie among employees fosters a positive workplace culture and conveys a more vital message to your clients.

Integration also has an impact on competition. Suppose you continue to evolve and align with providers in your space. In that case, you can grow your customer base and position yourself as the solution-seeker of choice while putting pressure on competitors. They limit their potential to solve ongoing threats if they do not follow your lead in collaborative efforts.

This is Note a Battle
It is important to note, though, this is not a battle between organizations; it is a battle against the security threats themselves. That is the final audience to consider with integrations. Like-minded companies leveraging their collective expertise to solve the most critical needs send a clear message; they are innovating to stay one step ahead.

Every company needs to assess its security measures regularly, and Gallagher's National Technical Manager Blake Smith provided a crucial response to the question, "How secure is your security?" Sometimes, a single business can give a solution; we in the security industry strive to do this daily. Nonetheless, there are situations when cooperation is required, as in the case of Traka and Gallagher. Consider that other providers were examining examples of such alliances.

In such a case, manufacturers could better guarantee a more significant proportion of clients are confident their security systems are as secure as possible.

This article originally appeared in the May / June 2023 issue of Security Today.